Ejisu-Juaben Assembly reclaims degraded farmlands
The Ejisu-Juaben Municipal Assembly has commenced the reclamation of water bodies and farmlands destroyed by the activities of illegal miners in the district.
The assembly has so far reclaimed five mining pits at Peminase and Achiase.
It will be recalled that on June 27, this year, the Ejisu-Juaben Municipal Assembly task force, led by its Chief Executive Officer, Mr Afrifa Yamoah-Ponko, seized mining equipment at five illegal mining sites in the municipality.
The operation, which lasted seven hours, was aimed at checking illegal mining activities in the municipality.
The sites visited were at Bomfa-Achiase and Peminase, where the illegal miners had polluted River Mentoh.
The items impounded included 16 excavators, a Jeep, a motorbike and four generators.
No arrest was, however, made during the operation.
Mr Afrifa Yamoah-Ponko, who disclosed this to the Daily Graphic at Ejisu, said the assembly had been able to raise GH¢30,000.00 through the reclamation from the various miners.
He explained that the money was accrued after they made the illegal miners to hire the assembly’s grader to reclaim the destroyed mined sites before their seized mining equipment was released to them.
He said everything was being done to ensure that every mined site in the municipality was covered to ensure that residents in these areas were free from the hazards associated with the operations of the illegal miners.
The MCE said the reclamation followed instructions by the government calling on all assemblies affected by the activities of the illegal miners to do everything possible to reclaim destroyed lands in their areas.
He said the government was not interested in antagonising anybody in the ongoing battle against illegal mining in the country.
Mr Yamoah-Ponko also said the assembly would continue to put in place the right measures to ensure that the residents enjoyed life without any challenges.
He also said what the government was doing was to ensure that peace and order prevailed in the country and that self-seeking people were not allowed to take the laws of the land into their hands by destroying farmlands and polluting water bodies in the country.
Mr Yamoah-Ponko indicated that the activities of the miners posed a threat to water bodies, farmlands and the environment as a whole. He also said the assembly would not condone any acts of lawlessness in the district.
According to the MCE, the assembly would continue to monitor all mining activities in the municipality and ensure that residents did not suffer unduly through the activities of the illegal miners.
He cautioned all those interested in mining in the country to follow due process by acquiring the relevant documents before they started their operations.
By Felix A. Baidoo/Daily Graphic/Ghana